The Stuff in Our Environment

My husband's uncle died this week. He was only 61, a Vietnam War veteran. When he returned home from the war he continued serving his fellow citizens by putting his life on the line everyday as a fireman.
But it was his service in Vietnam that finally got him. Several years ago, he was diagnosed with a rare cancer linked to Agent Orange, the toxic chemical used to eliminate foliage in the jungles during the war.
A month ago, his cousin died of the same cancer. They served in Vietnam together.
In our remembrance of his uncle, my husband and I pondered the long-lasting effects of war (my brother was also a delayed casualty, dying nearly 30 years to the day of the anniversary of his enlistment), and we wondered how many more veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan would still be dying from the effects of their service 40 years from now. We also talked about the long-lasting effects of the things we do to our environment that effects the health of the earth, as well as our well-being.
Not only are Americans still dying from the effects of Agent Orange, there are also still sick and dying residents in Vietnam.
That's why I'm always very careful about what kind of toxins we introduce to our own environment. We have spiders in the basement, but I've argued with my husband on more than one occasion that a bug bomb is not the way to go. I don't think those are healthy even for us. I reluctantly put topical pesticide on two of the dogs to kill ticks and fleas, but weighing the effects of the spot pesticide vs. the tick diseases (of which we've already had to treat Emma), it was the lesser of two evils.
As for the mosquitoes, ticks and chiggers in the yard, we live in the woods. There's no way to treat the entire landscape, but when we do, we use natural remedies. They may not work as well as the commercial products, but they aren't killing unintended critters - and hopefully, 30 years from now, we won't be dying of a cancer caused by it.